The present invention is directed to an apparatus for burning sulfur to sulfur dioxide, which sulfur dioxide can be used to generate sulfurous acid.
Attention has been directed to treating soil with sulfurous acid introduced into irrigation water for increasing crop yields. Although this can be accomplished by generating sulfur dioxide at a large central facility and transporting the sulfur dioxide to an individual farmer, it has been found that it is more efficient to generate the sulfur dioxide on site. This technique requires a small, but dependable, sulfur dioxide generator. Attempts to produce such a generator are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,226,201; 3,337,989; 3,627,134; 3,907,510 and 4,039,289. A commercially available sulfur dioxide generator for farmers is available from D & J Harmon Company, Inc., of Bakersfield, Calif. A problem with these generators is that they are based upon conventional pan-burner technology. A limitation of pan burners is that the maximum burning rate is generally about 7 pounds of sulfur per hour per square foot of burning surface.
It is desirable to have a generator which is more efficient than the conventional pan burner. This would allow the farmer to generate substantially more sulfurous acid for treating soil with an apparatus of substantially the same size as prior art equipment.